I'm cautiously optimistic that the citizens of this country would never allow a theocratic takeover. Slowly and surely we are becoming more secular. (Yes, it's often two steps forward and one back.) As a result, I think you're right, Richard, we are experiencing the last gasps from an alarmed group whose numbers are dwindling as their perceived rights and privileges are being "taken away." I think their attempts to reverse this trend will result in more and more outrageous and physically dangerous actions as they lose rational ground to stand on. Personally, I believe the United States is in the beginning stages of our last, great culture war: religion. It's going to be a LONG and bloody campaign.

Hmmm… well, I don't even think "we've" even started trying hard yet. I think we're very close to a tipping point. Recent coordination between secular, atheist and various human rights organizations has seen some huge numbers, as David Silverman, President of American Atheists said about the Reason Rally; "30,000 is the final estimate from Parks Services, that's 30,000 …in the rain"

And he actually said it like that, he even used the words "dot dot dot", to imply an ellipsis, ha ha ha...

Anyway, we have two choices here, be all proud and complacent about these kinds of achievements, …or, fucking push like hell. I'm definitely in the latter group.

I'm definitely with you that we need to fucking push like hell. But our opponents are going to be fucking pushing like hell as well in retaliation. Our numbers surely are growing, but there's still a huge segment of our society that believes we are a christian nation, and if we don't somehow uphold that notion, our moral and stable civilization will collapse into some kind of "Mad Max" existence. In addition, many people (and not necessary overtly religious people) treat religion with kid gloves and out of respect put it on a pedestal as some kind of sacred cow not to be fucked with. This well-engrained mindset is what we are up against. Changing that kind of ideology takes a lot of time. It will be a while before we reach the secular levels of our European counterparts but we will get there. I'm all for fucking pushing like hell; it's the only way we'll get there. It's gonna take some time, though, even with our unrelenting and pushing like hell stance.

At 60 yrears of age and an atheist, I think the 'whole campaign' from civil rights, to women rights, to gay rights ... and now it is time for humans 'free of idealogies' to organize and show we have rights too and deserve respect ....you can expect the idealogies/religious institutions to negatively brand us as the 'lowest'.

Man inhumanity to man over idealogies seems to have no end.... and women are the biggest losers.

TFA is right. As we grow in number we also grow in political strength. When millions or even hundreds of thousands of nonbelievers can use their voice and their vote to influence elections we will become a force to be reckoned with. Of course this will not be easy. I just hope I live long enough to see it.

the more this continues the more female Atheists there will be. in that regard, i'm all for these barbaric and assinine Bills. in all other respects, i find them deplorable.

btw, Georgia just passed the same/similar legislation. i feel bad for the backwater women of these states who will now need to drive hundreds of miles in their pickups getting 11 miles/gallon just so they can have an abortion, so as not to add to their poverty. (sweeping generalization used for dramatic effect)

the 20 weeks thing is absurd. my friends just had their final check up at 22 weeks - thankfully, no anomolies found. this time. last time they had the test at 22 weeks and got bad news and decided to terminate the pregnancy. under this law, they wouldn't be allowed to do so.

again, women are increasingly disgusted by GOP lawmakers. most, if not all, GOP lawmakers are religious zealots. hence, many women will be disgusted by religious zealots. it's not a big leap to Atheism from there. hell, i wouldn't be surprised if in 20 years 70% of all Atheists are women!! welcome aboard, ladies!

Jonathan, I've said it many times: I would expect it to take 100 years At Minimum to remove the all-too-pervasive influence of religion from the politics of the United States. I also do not discount a worst-case scenario where things got violent. The christian influence on American government has been taken for granted by many believers, and now that it is being challenged in legislatures and the courts, I have no doubt but that there are some of them who will not take the demotion of religion's importance lying down. I HOPE violence can be avoided, but I refuse to be naive about the possibility.

For places like Iran and Afghanistan, it will take far longer, because of the nearly complete integration of islam into those countries' culture ... and that process could be a LOT uglier.

Add this to the sword-rattling from the GOP about defunding Planned Parenthood and the ravings of Rick Santorum about abortion and women's rights in general (even though he has "suspended" his campaign), and you have more and more clear evidence of their attempts to disempower (if not disenfranchise!) women wholesale.

Any woman who would vote Republican in this election is voting against her own interests ... PERIOD.

the roundtable at Fox News (i know, i know) were saying yesterday that Obama is creating a war on women. how exactly? they didn't say. but it's happening, and they had a totally weird, outlier poll to prove their point. it was from about 6 weeks ago and it claimed that Romney had a substantial lead over Obama with women. of course, now it's a blowout the other way, but that didn't stop them from claiming women are fed up with BO. there biggest point - gas prices. women hate high gas prices, hence Obama's war on women, i guess. geez, that even hurt to type. how do those dunderheads manage to get dressed in the morning? it's as though they have no idea in the world why women would be upset with the GOP. it must be hard to live with your head in the ground.